The Answers Found in Stars and Friends
by Quaggy
Summary: Zuko is worried about what happens after the war. A speculation fic started around the begining of season 2, making this now an AU.


Title: The Answers Found in Stars and Friends  
Original Published: Dec. 17, 2006  
Rating: PG  
Notes: This might possibly the lamest title I've ever come up with. This was sort of a speculation fic for the end of the series that I started right around the begining of season 2. It still works within the cannon in a lot of ways, except there's no Toph because she hadn't been introduced yet. I didn't feel like reworking it to shoehorn her in, so you can either pretend that she's been traveling with Uncle Iroh or that she doesn't exist at all.

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When had their little family of three grown so large, Katara wondered. The small tavern had been taken over by friends and allies from all four nations that they had made on their journeys. More were on the way—enough to make up a small army. Although they would need more than a small one. Summer was drawing to a close; the comet would be here soon. They would have to go to war before then. But there was more than enough time for those worries tomorrow. Tonight was a night for reunions. It was a night to celebrate the fact that they were here, they were together, they were alive. Oblivious to the crowd, Uncle Iroh had joyfully embraced his nephew, who seemed to have missed him just as fiercely during the long months they had been apart. Their reunion—and the many like it that occurred throughout the evening—was touching. Old relationships were renewed and new friendships were formed regardless of tribe or nation. Everywhere Katara had looked there was a mixture of Earth, Fire, and Water Nations and Aang was at the center of it all. All of it suddenly became too much to take in.

Katara stepped into the night air, leaving the excitement behind her. It took her a few minutes to realize that she was not alone. Zuko, former prince of the Fire Nation, sat with his back against the wall, his wrists resting lightly against his knees. His eyes searched the starry night sky as if they held the answers to the secrets of the world. He looked so pensive and sad. Katara hesitated, unsure whether she should approach him or not. She wasn't his enemy anymore, but she wasn't exactly his friend. And he looked like he needed one.

Though they had been traveling together for a month now, Katara and Zuko hadn't become close in the same way he had with the boys. For Aang, Zuko was more that just his fire-bending master, he was both a mentor and a long-lost friend. Zuko, for his part, treated the Avatar like an annoying (but beloved) little brother. And as for Sokka… Well, frankly there were times when Katara wished the two teenagers didn't get along quite as well as they did. Zuko and Sokka's mutual distrust had somehow transformed itself into a close alliance. Katara supposed that it made sense, given they were so close in age and similar in temperament. Both were fiercely loyal warriors with strict moral codes and suspicious natures. It had become a regular problem whenever they met anyone new. Katara and Aang were then faced with identical glowers, two pairs of crossed arms, and a chorus of "We don't trust him!"

When left alone, Sokka and Zuko would pour over maps and charts, strategizing and planning battles. Or they would talk about girls. Zuko and Aang, on the other hand, would lose themselves in deep conversations about a variety of subjects. Sometimes, she and Sokka would return to find them discussing philosophy; other times, Zuko would be chuckling over some misadventure from Aang's past. But when Katara was left alone with Zuko, they would sit in an uncomfortable silence.

"Too noisy for you, Katara?" Zuko's voice jolted her from her musings.

"Oh. Umm... yes," she responded, disconcerted that he knew she was there. His eyes remained fixed on the heavens.

"You can sit down you know," he said. His head motioned slightly to his right side, his non-scarred side.

"Was it getting too crowded for you, too?"

"No. I just needed to think a little."

"What about?" she asked as she slowly lowered herself next to him.

"Nothing."

"It... doesn't seem like nothing," Katara ventured and then thought about the events of the day and the woman who had spit in Zuko's face when she'd discovered he was Fire Nation. "Is this about what happened earlier? That woman was an idiot."

"She lost her husband to the war and she was still hurting. I don't blame her. And it's not like it was the worst thing anyone has ever done to me."

"Hey, Zuk! They have melon bread!" Sokka called out into the night from the doorway, saving his sister from having to find a suitable response. Zuko's mouth turned up into that sad half-smile of his. He shifted his position to wave Sokka over.

"Oh hey, Katara! I didn't know you were out here too!" exclaimed the Water Tribe boy as he flopped onto the ground in front of them. "What's going on?"

"Nothing. Nothing's going on," Zuko said quickly, which, of course, only served to heighten Sokka's curiosity.

"It's the woman from this morning," Katara supplied.

"It's not the woman from this morning," Zuko objected and then sighed when he realized that neither of his companions believed him. "It's just... after everything that happened... after all the Fire Nation has done... how can there ever be peace? The Four Nations will never be the same. There aren't even Four Nations any more! And that's thanks to the Fire Nation too. How can things ever go back to normal?"

"Zuko... We can reclaim the balance. Have faith in Aang," Katara tried to console him.

"I do," Zuko replied somberly. "It's the rest of us I'm worried about. Doing the right thing is never easy. And the Fire Nation hasn't exactly been giving the other Nations reasons to try."

"The Fire Nation isn't all bad. Okay, so your father's insane... and your sister's pretty scary..."

"Not helping, Sokka," hissed Katara.

"Not that I don't appreciate the effort," Zuko said, with a ghost of a smile.

"What I mean is that we know that the Fire Nation is made up of more than those two creeps and soon, so will the rest of the world. You'll see. In the meantime, you should come inside and get some melon bread before Aang eats it all!"

"No, it's okay. I think I'll stay out here for while," Zuko replied. "But you should go in and get more. I'd feel bad if you didn't get any more melon bread because of me."

Though Zuko's tone brooked no argument, Sokka hesitated anyway and shifted his gaze to his sister, who nodded slightly. She would stay by Zuko's side. As much as he clearly wanted to be alone, it wouldn't help him—it would only make things worse. Appeased, her brother entered the noisy building, leaving them in their familiar, uneasy silence. Zuko let his right hand fall between them to brace himself as he shifted his weight slightly, as if contemplating an escape route.

"It will be alright, Zuko," Katara said, impulsively covering his hand with her own. "Honestly it will. Think about tonight. Sworn enemies have gathered together in one room and become a family. We just have to do the same thing on a bigger scale. We _can_ do it. I know we can."

He shifted his hand so that his palm was upwards, facing hers and grasped her hand tightly. "Maybe you're right."

The two benders sat silently under the stars, hand in hand, perfectly at peace.


End file.
